Suzanne Oberg, lounge manager at the Herbert Park Hotel describes her day.
I STARTED HERE last November, but I’ve been in Ireland, working in other hotels, for six years. I’m Swedish, from a small town called Karlskoga, between Stockholm and Gothenburg.
Initially I came for an internship in the Berkeley Court Hotel while studying hotel management in Spain, and I stayed. Dublin’s a nice city with plenty of job opportunities. At least there were: it’s a bit quieter now.
I work a five-day week, with Mondays and Tuesdays off. You get used to working weekends, and most of my friends are in the hotel sector, too, so we keep the same hours.
The walk in from Sandymount takes me 15 minutes each day. If I start at 7.30am I finish at 4pm. If I start at 2.30pm I finish at 11pm. The variety suits me, because it gives me flexibility to get things done if I need to during the day.
The first thing I do when I get in is check the mise en place – the crockery, cutlery, glassware – to make sure it’s all in order.
We have a breakfast, lunch and dinner, and an afternoon tea menu. I’m very hands on – my job is to be always on the floor, so I take orders and serve customers all day.
Because we’re in a business district we get a lot of corporate clients. Typically they’ll be in for a quick bite or will be having meetings while they eat, so they tend not to like to be disturbed. Leisure customers like you to be chattier and to get to know you more.
We’re right beside the RDS, so we get very busy if there’s something on there. If it’s a concert then there is always a great buzz.
I love when it’s busy, because as a team everybody seems to work really well. Even at quiet times, though, there is always work to be done, cleaning or training.
When the lounge is really busy it’s important that you acknowledge people when they come in and let them know you will get to them as soon as possible.
You also make sure you have a big smile on your face, which is easy for me, as I’ve a very positive disposition.
There are six of us here and we split tips evenly. If there’s a big match or someone’s been in for a christening, the tips can be bigger, which is a nice perk, but not everyone tips and it’s certainly not expected.
When I started in hotels I used to be exhausted by the end of the day. Now I’m used to it, and the great thing is, because I’m run off my feet every day, I don’t need to go to a gym.
** Suzanne Oberg is lounge manager at the Herbert Park Hotel in Ballsbridge, Dublin
** In conversation with Sandra O’Connell